ORDINARY EVERYDAY HEROES AND FEMALE AWESOMENESS. SHE’S A SHE-RO ! Meet my guest PAULINE LOPEZ in Manila, the Philippines
Smitten by Faith Issue # 00035 April 2nd 2022
The word ‘ SHE-RO’ is a blend of the words, ‘she’ and ‘hero’.
‘Shero’ has now even been listed in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a new word which actually best connotes what many recognise as female awesomeness. ‘Shero’ is a lovely female positive ‘label’ ( if you wish to call it that ) for real life achievements of ordinary women who are role models and whose life, talents, achievements and personal qualities are an inspiration.
Above : Our Shero, Pauline Lopez who is a beautiful and dazzling world-class athlete and a wonderful human being
So, today, I would like to speak about ordinary everyday heroes. A women hero. Meet ‘Smitten By Faith’s’ very own SHERO, my guest from The Philippines, PAULINE LOPEZ.
Pauline is :
· a Taekwondo Jin who has been competing in American and International Taekwondo events ever since she was a teenager
· a tireless advocate for sports and women’s causes
· an aspiring movie actor
· a successful Talk Show Host.
To achieve this, Pauline exemplifies the Shero qualities and awesomeness which all women can aspire to have. Pauline is :
· philosophically, a true Taekwondo Jin
· tenacious
· dedicated
· family-oriented
· compassionate
· a loving child of God
Pauline Lopez is totally deserving of the Shero title as you will see below. At just 25 years old, she has overcome so many difficult challenges and yet managed to achieve so much, not just as a international athlete but as a sports and woman’s advocate, actor and talk show host. Pauline provides inspiration, hope and fortitude to all young girls. I would like to encourage all girls that yes, they can be Sheros too. Just like Pauline Lopez - not just a girl - she’s a high achiever and an ordinary everyday hero who does extraordinary things !
THE TAEKWONDO JIN
Above : Pauline, the Taekwondo Jin in action !
Taekwondo or Taekwon-Do is a Korean form of martial arts characterized by punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. This martial art, developed in the early 1940s, is now a very popular international competitive sport and is featured in regional, world and Olympic events. For those who practise martial arts like karate, judo and taekwondo, excelling at them is more than a mere sport; martial arts has always been about cultivating one’s humanity. In fact, insofar as Pauline, holder of a black belt of Taekondo ( a Taekwondo Jin) wants to win competitively, she also knows that being faster, stronger and higher is not really what Taekwondo is about. A true Taekwondo Jin must ( at all times ) have the following philosophical bedrock qualities of : courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and an indomitable spirit. In fact, Pauline Lopez has all the above in spades and her ability to be a true Taekwondo Jin in spirit is precisely what makes Pauline Lopez shine and dazzle as a sportswoman and as a Shero! Her humanity, philosophical heart and skills at Taekwondo all go effortlessly together.
Pauline Lopez is a beautiful athlete whose sports achievements in Taekwondo have not been without very much hard work, sacrifice and her trademark tenacity. Her parents emigrated to Sacramento, California when Pauline was just 6 years old to ensure better lives for the family. Growing up in California, her father Efren Lopez who had a day job in health care also coached Taekwondo in his spare time as it was a sport he was very good at in the Philippines – in fact Efren was a former national Taekwondo sportsman until injury put his sports career to an end. Pauline started watching her father coach the boys and guess what, she not only wanted to do Taekwondo too ; she was better than the boys ! She started competing in youth events even though her father never wanted her to take up the sport thinking it was not feminine enough for his little girl. But Pauline was already fascinated by Taekwondo and her determination won the day and the little girl Pauline started to win many youth medals and trophies all over the USA.
Pauline then took the leap and started competing internationally at the age of 14 years in 2010 at the Asian Games held in Guangzhou but she was defeated. This was followed by more defeats at competitions at the 2011 World Taekwondo in Gyeongju; and at the 2013 World Taekwondo in Puebla, Mexico. Finally in 2013 she won a bronze medal at the Southeast Asian Games in Napidaw and that same year, at the Asian Youth Games in Nanjing, she won her first international gold medal ! But, it was not plain sailing and after that, the gutsy Pauline lost a few more competitions in 2014 at the Asian Games in Incheon and the World Taekwondo championships in Chelyabinks, Russia. She made up for this in 2015 by winning the gold medal at the Southeast Asian Games in Singapore. In 2016, her little heart must have been so disappointed when she failed to qualify for the Summer Olympics. But with the indomitable spirit of a true Taekwondo Jin, Pauline went on that same year to win the gold medal at the 2016 Asian Taekwondo Championship in Pasay, the Philippines. She could not be happier, winning the gold in her native Philippines !
In fact, in spite of growing up in the United States, Pauline never forgot her Filipino roots. And so in 2016, she returned full time to live and train in the Philippines. Pauline also enrolled as a college freshman as a psychology major at the famous Ateneo University in Manila. In the process – since 2016, Pauline has won medals and more medals in Taekwondo. In 2018 her hard work paid off and she won the bronze medal in the 2018 Asian Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia and finally in 2019 in front of her adoring home crowd in Manila, Pauline won the gold medal at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. In front of her parents and thousands of her adoring cheering fans, the tearful Pauline said, "I'm very overwhelmed by the cheers of our kababayans. It’s really nice to play in your home town. It was so inspiring."
As the host nation of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, the Philippines also won the most medals and it was indeed sweet for Pauline that it was she who won the first gold medal of the Games ! That unforgettable day in 2019, Pauline surely cemented her position as the nation’s Taekwondo sweetheart – the Philippines’ own Shero !
The Tokyo Olympics was next. Sadly, Pauline failed to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics 2021 after losing the quarterfinals of the 2021 Asian Taekwondo Olympic Qualification tournament in Amman, Jordan. However, this defeat only made Pauline stronger. She hasn't looked back. She knows that she did her best and win or lose, her perseverance and hard work was what mattered.
Here are some of Pauline’s remarks given during interviews which show her awesome spirit.
"I take great inspiration from the athletes before me to pursue my dreams.”
"Because of Taekwondo, I get to emulate the positive characteristics - such as discipline, confidence and determination - that made our great athletes who they are today.”
"I hope in the future that I can do the same for the younger generation of taekwondo players.”
"I want to keep and share the champion spirit."
Bravo Pauline !!! Our Shero !
THE IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY
Above : Pauline with her loving family : Dad Efren, Mum Chi, Sister Anne and brother Luigi
Missing out on the Tokyo Olympics did not shake the confidence, charm and grace of Pauline Lopez. For this, she also has her loving family to thank. This beautiful tough and graceful athlete can always count on the warm cocoon of her family - her father Efren, her mother Chi, her sister elder Anne and her younger brother, Luigi. Her parents uprooted themselves from The Philippines to move to the United States when they were all so young ( she was 6 years old ) in order to give them an opportunity to have a dream future. Growing up, Effren and his wife Chi made sure that the children also spoke Tagalog and that they never forgot their Filipino culture or values. Pauline also credits a lot of her skills as a Taekwondo Jin to her father Effren Lopez. She says, “ …I wouldn't be the person or athlete I am today if it wasn't for my father; I really did grow up with my coach !”
ADVOCACY FOR SPORTS AND WOMEN
Above : Pauline at one of her sports advocacy campaigns with corporate sponsors
During the Covid Pandemic, Pauline launched a project to help girls from vulnerable communities in the Philippines. Working with corporate sponsors, the campaign which was called "Mula Noon, Hanggang Ngayon - Tuloy ang Pagiging Champion", translated into English as "From Then, Until Now - Continue to be a Champion" has inspired thousands of youths and interested them in sport and Pauline continues with various online campaigns for young people in the Philippines in a bid to create a new generation of athletes.
SHERO-TALK
Above : Pauline as the charming and irresistible host in SHERO TALK
On October 31st 2021, Pauline launched herself as a talk show host in ‘SHERO TALK’, her new podcast and show which now airs on YouTube and Philippines Facebook ‘Plus Network’. Just barely a few months after the launch and completing the first season, Shero Talk is wildly successful and has been able to bring together the presence of many inspiring Filipina women from all walks of life and backgrounds. Each episode of SHERO-TALK is aired every 2 weeks with Season 2 launching this April. Pauline is the host where she interviews and speaks to various strong, interesting empowered women. She draws them out and asks them about their lives, work, hopes, fears, dreams and in the process share their success with millions of her audience. Some of Pauline’s guests have included Maureen Wroblewitz (Winner of Asia’s Next Top Model), Bianca Gonzalez (TV host & Personality), Niña Corpus (Journalist) and Mj Lastimosa (Miss Universe 2014 Philippines). SHERO TALK hosted by Pauline Lopez has become the one of the top influencer marketing platforms.
( Take a look at @virtualplaygroundph @nike @shero.ph.)
THE ASPIRING MOVIE ACTOR
Pauline is now also transitioning into the entertainment field where she will be an actor in soon to be announced movie projects. Under the guidance of her long-time manager, Virtual Playground, Pauline’s dream is to star in movies that are empowering, inspiring, and exciting as well as keep her in touch with her martial arts skills and background.
PAULINE’S CATHOLIC FAITH
In 2020, Pauline made her appearance as one of the 80 Millennials from all over the world, writing her beautiful reflection about Raphael’s painting, the ‘Annunciation’ in my book, ‘Millennials Meet Mary’, a biography of the Virgin Mary which was launched in May 2020 at the Vatican Museum. Pauline’s strong Catholic faith was very evident in her commentary. Pauline wrote that the painting is “ ….unforgettable and really a striking work of art. At the same time, it reinforces my own faith in Christianity. If I close my eyes and try to imagine what this moment would’ve been like? This would be it. The artist was an instrument from God to show this image for us to see for thousands of years to come.”
Left : The biography of the Virgin Mary, ‘Millennials Meet Mary’ which was launched at the Vatican Museum in 2020
Right : The painting by Raphael, ‘The Annunciation’ which Pauline reflected on in ‘Millennials Meet Mary’
Pauline added, “ …growing up, my parents enrolled my siblings and me in Catholic schools. So, initially, when looking at the painting, I already had a good background on the story of the Annunciation. But reflecting on the painting, the image definitely goes beyond that. I feel so moved as I try to imagine what emotions Mother Mary must have felt when the angel delivered the Good News. That God is blessing Mary with something so precious, so important in the world. Mother Mary or ‘Mama Mary’ ( as we Filipinos call her ) is fully surrendering herself and trusting in the Lord without an ounce of doubt or fear because she was given this gift from God. Faith. That’s something in my life that I’ve always related to. I grew up in a Catholic home. My parents especially my mother taught me that we should always trust in the Lord and in His plan. In my sport, I’ve won and lost multiple times. My winning moments come with a lot of sacrifice and hard work along with the numerous times I’ve lost but one thing is for certain - win or lose, I lift everything up to the Lord. Just like Mama Mary, I surrender myself and have faith in the Lord because I believe that God blesses all of us with abundance and generosity.”
Inspiring bright beautiful words indeed from our Shero, Pauline Lopez !
The virtue of ‘goodness’ is our universal attribute and Pauline has leaned on not just her athletic prowess but also her faith. Pauline knows that God has blessed her with wonderful skills and talents and she uses them to inspire the young women of the Philippines; encouraging them to do their best and to be extraordinary.
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